Live Oak Bancshares (NASDAQ:LOB) Given Market Perform Rating at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued their market perform rating on shares of Live Oak Bancshares (NASDAQ:LOB) in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $40.00 price target on the bank’s stock, down from their previous price target of $45.00.

LOB has been the topic of several other research reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a buy rating and issued a $47.00 price target on shares of Live Oak Bancshares in a report on Monday, April 1st. TheStreet downgraded shares of Live Oak Bancshares from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $38.00.

Live Oak Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LOB opened at $33.18 on Friday. Live Oak Bancshares has a 12-month low of $19.53 and a 12-month high of $47.22. The company has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67 and a beta of 1.60. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $39.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.39.

Live Oak Bancshares (NASDAQ:LOB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.20). Live Oak Bancshares had a net margin of 10.62% and a return on equity of 10.45%. The business had revenue of $119.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $119.36 million. On average, analysts forecast that Live Oak Bancshares will post 2.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Live Oak Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 27th were paid a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 26th. Live Oak Bancshares’s payout ratio is 6.03%.

Insider Activity at Live Oak Bancshares

In related news, Director Miltom Emmett Petty sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.73, for a total transaction of $397,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 121,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,844,715.93. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Micah S. Davis sold 8,613 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.87, for a total transaction of $343,400.31. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 43,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,748,857.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Miltom Emmett Petty sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.73, for a total transaction of $397,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 121,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,844,715.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 23.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Live Oak Bancshares

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LOB. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares in the first quarter worth $28,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 66.0% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the bank’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares in the first quarter worth $44,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 1,127.6% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,136 shares of the bank’s stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 1,962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its holdings in Live Oak Bancshares by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 3,000 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.95% of the company’s stock.

About Live Oak Bancshares

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Live Oak Banking Company that provides various banking products and services in the United States. It operates through two segments, Banking and Fintech. The company accepts various deposit products, including noninterest-bearing demand, as well as interest-bearing checking, money market, savings, and time deposits.